Isra had vague memories of sleeping next to her father as a little girl, snuggled together under the covers in the winter, but when she was old enough, her father made a bed for her, and they had bunks, away from each other but in the same room, so she could hear her father’s snoring. Her only other experience with sleeping next to someone was with a pack of wolves she’d kept in the house for a week during a particularly bad winter storm.
She had the urge to do that with Verity, to curl up next to her like they were two wolves with a storm howling outside. She wondered whether that was a normal thing to feel, but given that the rest of them had different rooms, she suspected that it was not.
She was the first to rise and spent some time in the common room of their suite, reading from a book that Mizuki had left there the night before, originally borrowed from Hannah. It was a romance novel, of the sort that Isra had only read a few of before, focused on a naive young milliner and a much older wizard who lived in a local castle. There were ten books in Isra’s home, plus the six holy books, and Isra had read all of them from cover to cover many times. It had only been in the past year that she’d discovered there was a small library in Pucklechurch, and then after that, discovered that at a library you were allowed to take whatever books you wanted if you promised to bring them back in good condition. Isra came into town on market days and always stopped at the library to return what she’d read and get something new. There was something that felt both social and intimate about reading, even if she wasn’t sharing what she read with anyone else.
Hannah and Alfric were next to wake up, and they exited their rooms at virtually the same time. Alfric was dressed casually, without any of his armor, just a button-down white shirt that was slightly open at the neck, and a pair of well-tailored trousers secured with a leather belt. Hannah was wearing nearly the same outfit, though her clothes fit her far less well, and they were far different from each other in almost every other way. If they noticed the similarity of their outfits, it went uncommented on by either.
“So,” said Hannah. “I s’pose we’ll do breakfast?”
“Mizuki and I were supposed to go see friends of hers,” said Isra.
“How was Verity?” asked Alfric.
“Good,” nodded Isra.
Alfric shifted. “I’ll try to spend some time with her today, if she’s amenable. We have things we need to do, primarily selling some of what we got from the dungeon. It would give us a good opportunity to talk.”
“Or give her space,” said Isra.
“Perhaps give her space by not talkin’ about the things she doesn’t want talked about,” said Hannah. “But still be there with her, in case she wants to.”
“I suppose,” said Isra. She looked over at the doors and pursed her lips. “It will be some time until they wake up.”
“Schedules are off though,” said Hannah. “Verity went to bed earlier than she normally does.”
“We spent some time talking,” said Isra.
“Oh,” said Hannah, leaning over and looking at the book. “And how’re you findin’ that one?”
“It’s not to my tastes,” said Isra, frowning at the book.
“Ay?” asked Hannah.
“They’re… men,” said Isra. The young milliner and the older wizard both.
“Ay,” Hannah said again, this time not as a question, but rather, with a hint of aggression, like she was getting ready for a fight.
Isra shrugged. She didn’t know what she was supposed to be feeling, or why Hannah might be upset. “It doesn’t matter,” said Isra, setting the book down with no intention of ever picking it back up. She had nothing against romances, but there was something in how the book was written, in how it portrayed the characters, that she hadn’t liked. To try to put it in words would assuredly embarrass her in front of people who seemed to respect her prowess in hunting and fighting.
“Ay,” said Hannah, softening somewhat. She picked up the book and looked at the bookmark that Mizuki had placed in it. “I’ll have to speak with Mizuki when she wakes and see what she has to say about it. I suppose I only told her it was a romance, and it might not be to her tastes either.” Isra was confused by what that might mean, and let it pass.
It took Mizuki quite some time to rise, and Isra wondered what arrangements had been made with these sorcerers that meant they could be so relaxed about their schedule. Plants and animals had rhythms and patterns, responses to the natural conditions, but humans were different, responding to the bells and scheduling things around them. The bells, at least, depended upon the rising and setting of the sun, but there was still something off in people, who would wait for the right bell to open a store, even if they were already there and behind the counter. If you knocked on the door just a few minutes before the right bell, you were rude.
So Isra wondered, as Hannah and Alfric talked about dungeons, whether these sorcerers they were planning to meet were a different sort of people. It made sense for breakfast to be at a certain time, because breakfast involved a certain amount of labor, and unlike animals who could eat what they wanted, with humans, food was best eaten when it was hot. Isra wondered if that, cooking, was what separated humans from animals. Perhaps it led to all the other things.
Mizuki came out of her bedroom, still stretching, with a smile on her face. “These beds are great.”
“Good sleep?” asked Hannah.
“Absolutely great,” said Mizuki. She looked at Alfric. “How are you?”
“Fine,” he said. “Sore.”
“Next time only use one of your legs when haulin’ the wardrobe,” said Hannah. “That way I’ll be able to take out some of the soreness.”
Alfric laughed. “I’ll be sure to, thanks for the tip.” He’d looked quite grim when he’d gone to bed but seemed better with a long sleep. Isra wondered whether this was his first or second time doing the day.
“Ready for breakfast?” asked Mizuki, looking Isra up and down.
“I suppose,” said Isra. “You’ve heard from the guild?”
“From the twins, yes,” said Mizuki. “They’re ready to go, but I think we’ll have a bit to wait while the breakfast is being made. More of a brunch than a breakfast, I think, but it should be fun. And Dom will be there to answer your questions and mine, which is good, right?”
“Good,” said Isra, though she could feel a tightness in her stomach. When she had said yes to Alfric’s proposition, she hadn’t thought that it would lead to anything beyond a momentary adventure. Now she was on the verge of an understanding of herself and her place in the world. It had been unasked for.
After some brief goodbyes, with Verity still sleeping in, the two of them left.
Did Isra like Mizuki? It was a question she turned over in her head, as she often did with questions she asked herself.
Speaking with Alfric was nice. He was good at explaining things, and he seemed to feel a great deal of empathy and understanding for her. With Verity, there were comfortable silences and what felt like an agreement that they could both be quiet. But speaking with Mizuki, while it had a buzzing constancy to it, demanded little of Isra, and in that respect, was pleasant. Waiting around while Mizuki spoke to others at great length was less nice.